When Lisa Bühler started online boutique Lisa Says Gah In 2014, she stored inventory in her kitchen cupboard. A decade later, Lisa Says Gah has two retail locations and its own clothing line, in addition to a thriving ecommerce shop.
If you have a passion for fashion and curating unique clothing collections, you might consider opening an online boutique. Ecommerce platforms like Shopify make it easier than ever to create a beautiful online store and get your business up and running in no time.
This article will walk you through how to start an online boutique, with step-by-step instructions, insights, and firsthand experiences from online boutique owners.
What is an online boutique?
An online boutique is a small ecommerce shop that specializes in selling curated clothing. Accessories, or both. Unlike traditional retail stores, online boutiques typically focus on a specific style, aesthetic, or niche market.
While the word “boutique” is most commonly associated with small, curated fashion stores, it can also be used for any small, specialized business. For example, a boutique hotel might curate a particular aesthetic for its space, a boutique design agency might specialize in a specific type of design, or a boutique home store might sell a small selection of home goods.
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How to start an online boutique in 10 steps
- Choose a niche you’re passionate about
- Identify market gaps
- Write a business plan
- Develop or source your products
- Work on your brand
- Price your products
- Create your online store
- Invest in social selling and sales channels
- Create a shipping strategy
- Market your online boutique
The best online boutiques in the industry weren’t thrown together overnight. Here’s what you need to know to get started:
1. Choose a niche you’re passionate about
If you’re interested in starting an online boutique, you probably already know you’re passionate about fashion. Now you need to find a particular fashion niche you’re excited about. Anchoring your product offering in a particular niche will help your business stand out from competitors.
Here are a few niches you might build your online boutique around:
- A hard-to-find fit, like plus-size vintage clothing or gender-neutral bathing suits
- A specific aesthetic, like Western or preppy
- Clothing from a particular region, like from Los Angeles–based designers or Japan–based manufacturers
- A specific clothing type, like loose-fitting clothes made from natural fibers
- A value, like sustainable, handmade, or locally made
- Occasion-based clothing, like festivalwear or wedding guest attire
- Hard-to-find brands
The online boutique Archive Market sells designer pieces from past seasons, showcasing runway photographs alongside images of the clothing itself.
2. Identify market gaps
A successful online boutique won’t prosper on passion alone. Consider a problem in your niche market that isn’t currently being solved or a product that isn’t available.
For example, maybe you notice that you can’t find trendy linen clothing with colorful patterns, or maybe you realize it’s difficult to buy locally designed shoes. In essence, figure out what products should exist that aren’t being offered by competitors. To find this market gap, you’ll likely need to conduct market research.
Rhiannon Taylor, founder of RT1home, discovered a need for high-end gardening supplies in the United States. “When I started RT1home, you couldn’t find nice supplies anywhere in the US, online or in-store. It was all cheap mass-produced stuff from Home Depot,” she says. “I started creating accessories like tarps and coverlets because they didn’t exist. I was making stuff I wanted to use for myself because I couldn’t find it.”
Rhiannon also saw a need for premium indoor gardening tools for urban gardeners. Most city dwellers don’t have the space for clunky gardening tools. To combat this, she began curating premium Japanese gardening tools and reselling them through her online boutique, which has proven to be a big hit with her target market.
3. Write a business plan
A business plan will guide your journey when creating an online boutique from home. It will also help you validate your idea and think through the logistical requirements of running your business. Take the time to solidify your strategy, spot potential obstacles, understand what resources you’ll need, and clarify your business idea before launch. A solid business plan will also help you ensure your business finances are in order as you grow.
Ask yourself: What is the goal of my online boutique? Do I want to exclusively curate products from other brands, or do I want to start my own label? Do I want to sell both curated products and my own products?
4. Develop or source your products
You have several decisions to make when starting your online boutique. Beyond choosing which products to sell, you’ll need to decide on which business model to use. Your business model will inform which products you offer and your future operational expenses.
You can always mix and match different models to meet your needs. Common ecommerce business models for boutiques include:
- Dropshipping. With this model, a third party makes products and fulfills orders on demand. You do not hold inventory and won’t need to buy inventory upfront, which can lower startup costs.
- Buying wholesale. This model involves buying other brands’ finished products at wholesale prices and reselling them in your online store. This model is ideal for vintage clothing boutiques.
- Handcrafted products. With this method, you’ll make products yourself or upcycle existing products—think reworking old quilts into jackets or embroidering vintage jeans. You’ll then fulfill orders on your own. There are many things to make and sell yourself.
- Print on demand. This is similar to dropshipping in that you won’t order inventory upfront, but with a print-on-demand model, you’ll create the designs for your products (like t-shirts or pillows), and your third-party partner will make the products and fulfill the orders.
- Manufactured products. This involves working with a domestic or international manufacturer that creates your products and ships them to your home or warehouse. You’ll order inventory upfront and be responsible for storing it.
If you opt for a manufacturing business model, keep supply chain considerations in mind. Although supply chain challenges have eased since COVID-19 disruptions, they are still more prevalent than before the pandemic. This means you’ll want to think about lead times to ensure the raw materials you need can be shipped quickly to your manufacturer, and that your manufacturer can quickly ship finished products to your warehouse. If you opt for an international manufacturer, you’ll also want to consider the potential for longer lead times and rising tariffs.
In Rhiannon’s case, local manufacturing was non-negotiable. “After a decade working with big corporations who heavily manufacture overseas, I have no interest in producing products like that,” she says.
Even as RT1home has seen record sales, Rhiannon continues to manufacture certain products in-house, while also working with sewists and local producers to turn mock-ups and sketches into reality.
Here are tips for finding a manufacturer:
1. Research online. Google, Yelp, and manufacturing directories like Maker’s Row and Thomasnet are great places to find local producers.
2. Reach out to a few candidates at once. Email or call to set up an appointment.
3. Meet potential producers with professional mock-ups and prototypes. Communicate that you have a vision for your business.
You might also consider finding a manufacturer that prioritizes sustainability: More than 70% of consumers cited sustainability as a concern when buying clothes and footwear in 2025.
Know that when you’re first starting out, you might have to prove yourself to manufacturers, since most don’t do one-off projects. You’ll need to show that you’ll be a long-term client by presenting a great vision and solid product ideas.
5. Work on your brand
Your branding will set the tone for everything from marketing emails to the graphic design of your ecommerce site.
You’ll need to make a few decisions upfront:
- What does your brand stand for? What are your brand values?
- What’s your aesthetic? How would you like your brand identity to show up visually? Choose a color scheme, font suite, logo, and product photography style.
- How will you tell your brand story, and what’s your brand voice?
You’ll also need to choose a business name. Shopify’s free business name generator can help you come up with one.
Take a look at the branding for online boutique Lisa Says Gah. The company sells brightly colored and patterned clothing, which is reflected in its brightly colored website. This care-free brand identity is also on view in the company’s product photography, which features models in real-life settings rather than photo studios.
💡 Tip: Depending on your budget, you can hire an agency to help you create a fresh, relevant brand. You can also use tools like Shopify’s free logo maker to help you create design assets.
6. Price your products
Pricing your products is one of the cornerstone decisions you’ll need to make as you start your online boutique. It affects many aspects of your business, including your target market and the number of products you’ll need to sell to make a profit.
You’ll have a number of pricing strategies to choose from. The most simple is cost-plus pricing, which you’ll calculate using the following formula:
Production costs (Labor + Overhead + Materials) + Markup = Price
Other popular pricing strategies include competitive pricing (setting your prices in line with competitors), value-based pricing (pricing based on your customers’ perceived value of your products), and luxury pricing (setting prices high to indicate luxury status).
7. Create your online store
Ecommerce platforms like Shopify make starting an online store simple. You can start with a customizable website template, which lets you design your store without coding experience.
From there, you’ll be able to access a number of tools that can help you optimize your online store and simplify the process of running your business. These include the comprehensive email marketing tool Shopify Email, AI language tools like Shopify Magic, and more.
Shopify also has features that can be particularly helpful to online boutiques. Shopify Collective makes it easy to sell products from other Shopify brands in your store: Customers will complete their multibrand purchase from a single checkout, and the other brands will fulfill their portions of the orders. Wholesale and dropshipping apps like Faire can also help you source products to sell, and they integrate with your Shopify store to make sales management a breeze.
8. Invest in social selling and sales channels
Rhiannon recommends building your online boutique first, then listing on online marketplaces like Etsy. She also recommends incorporating social media into your marketing strategy to build awareness. RT1home was a brand started on Instagram, and Shopify’s social media integrations were key to helping the company sell more products.
In addition to an online store, Rhiannon recommends new boutique owners “not put all your eggs in one basket.” That can mean building a presence across multiple social media platforms, like Pinterest, Facebook, and TikTok.
That doesn’t mean you’ll need to set up your shop from scratch on each platform. Shopify has tools and apps that help you advertise and sell on social sites like Facebook and Instagram, allowing you to manage inventory across platforms. If you want to sell on marketplaces like Etsy, you can use Shopify’s Marketplace Connect app to manage cross-platform orders from a single hub.
The Bay Area–based clothing boutique Hero Shop, for example, sells on Facebook in addition to selling on its ecommerce site and retail location in Larkspur, California.
9. Create a shipping strategy
So far, you’ve put a ton of effort into creating an incredible customer experience. You’ve done the research, sourced your products, and built an online store for your boutique—all to keep customers happy.
But one thing that can ruin all your progress is a bad shipping experience. Shipping is a key part of your online boutique: It represents a major expense, and it plays a large role in customer satisfaction. That’s why it’s so important to decide on a shipping strategy before you start marketing your new boutique. From the start, your business structure should account for shipping.
“Don’t sell yourself short on shipping. People want free shipping and shipping deals, but it’s expensive,” says Rhiannon. “I’ve seen a lot of new business owners lose money this way. Make sure you factor shipping into product costs if you go that route.”
Consider the following questions as part of your strategy:
- Where will you ship? Local, national, or international?
- What packaging will you use? Do you have fragile products with special packing needs? Are you interested in using sustainable solutions?
- Will you offer several modes of shipping, like rush shipping and local shipping?
As you start shipping products, keep track of key shipping metrics to measure the success of your shipping strategy. For example, consider measuring:
- On-time, in-full (OTIF). This is the number of shipments that arrived to customers on time with all of the correct items.
- Return rate. Sixty-two percent of consumers are more likely to buy online if a company offers free return shipping. While offering free return shipping can encourage sales, it can also cut into your bottom line if you see a high return rate. The average ecommerce return rate was 16.9% in 2024, but fit-dependent products (like clothing) can have even higher return rates.
- Time to ship. This is the amount of time it takes to fulfill and order and put it in transit, and it can play a large role in your overall shipping speed. Monitor your time to ship to ensure you’re being honest with customers about how long it will take to receive their package.
💡 Tip: Use Shopify Shipping to curb shipping costs, get discounted rates, and speed up fulfillment.
10. Market your online boutique
The ultimate goal of marketing your online boutique is brand awareness. You want to be the go-to shopping destination for your particular product or niche. Once you’ve created your online store and have your business name, it's time to start marketing. From social media marketing to SEO, here are some options to consider.
Instagram marketing
Instagram has become a go-to platform for online boutiques to show off products and find new customers. Instagram marketing includes both organic and paid marketing (ads and promoted posts). Try making shortform video content like behind-the-scenes tours and image carousels or collages showcasing new products. You might also solicit user-generated content (UGC) to help create an online community around your brand.
SEO and SEM marketing
Search engine marketing (SEM) and search engine optimization (SEO) marketing help people find your business on search engines like Google. SEM marketing focuses on paid strategies like Google Ads, and SEO marketing strategies include organic marketing strategies like publishing blog posts (a form of content marketing).
Content marketing can be part of an effective SEO marketing strategy, and you can turn your content into a go-to resource for information on your brand or industry. Rhiannon found success writing blog articles and sharing tutorial videos on her ecommerce website. Evergreen content like blogs and videos can drive leads and sales for years to come.
Facebook ads
If you want to find a specific target audience for your products, Facebook ads can help you market to people who fit your target customer profile. You can use the Meta pixel, a tool that tracks customer behavior across your site, to show Facebook users targeted ads.
Email marketing
Email is one of the best “owned” marketing channels, where you control the content and distribution. You can build an email list and send messages to new and existing customers to sell, educate, or build loyalty with email marketing. You can send a range of emails, including welcome emails, newsletters, abandoned cart reminders, and sale announcements.
3 things to consider before starting an online boutique
Planning and following a strategic business plan is an important part of launching a small business, as it can outline how your online boutique will take shape. The best online boutique owners aren’t just creatives, they’re also driven entrepreneurs.
1. Starting an online boutique takes sweat equity
You won’t make your first sale overnight. But with dedication and by focusing your energy on the right tasks, you’ll approach your business with a sense of purpose and come out on top. As you’re wearing many hats (or all of them) in the early days of the business, take time to learn what you love about being an entrepreneur. Then, when you’re ready, delegate the rest.
2. Challenges come with the territory
You’ll be faced with challenges, especially if this is your first business. It’s important to stay motivated and manage expectations about your progress. Use challenges as learning moments as you create your online boutique. They’ll only help you build a better experience for your customers.
3. There may be legal requirements for you to do business
Consider legal aspects of your industry. Look into what business licenses you’ll need to obtain and which government regulations you’ll need to follow in order to operate. While there’s no specific license for owning a boutique, you may need a city, county, or state permit for taxes, purchasing inventory, and trademarking a brand name for your business.
3 best-in-class online boutique examples
Now that you know how to start an online boutique, let’s look at a few of the best examples of online boutiques for inspiration for your own online business.
1. Lisa Says Gah
Lisa Bühler founded Lisa Says Gah in 2014 as an online boutique selling clothes from a range of independent designers. In 2017, she launched Lisa Says Gah’s own clothing line, selling it alongside products from other brands. Most of Lisa Says Gah’s products are made of natural or deadstock fabrics, and almost all of its items feature vibrant colors and prints. Damson Madder, Sønderhaus, and Intentionally Blank are just a few of the brands Lisa Says Gah sells.
The company was ecommerce-only until 2021, when Lisa Says Gah opened its first offline retail shop. Now, the company has two retail locations, in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Why it works
With natural fibers and deadstock fabrics, Lisa Says Gah’s products reflect the brand’s commitment to sustainability. Vibrant colors and patterns serve as an aesthetic throughline.
2. Ali Golden
The California-based boutique Ali Golden sells ethically and sustainably manufactured clothing in cutting edge styles. The brand sells its own clothing line alongside products from popular brands like Sandy Liang and Stine Goya. Ali Golden has two physical locations (in Berkeley and Ojai, California) in addition to its ecommerce shop.
Why it works
Ali Golden promises that all of its products are made with shared values of sustainability and ethical manufacturing, which it also prioritizes in its own products. The company’s products also share a common aesthetic: They’re trendy, edgy, and often gender-neutral.
3. Andie Swim
Andie Swim launched in 2016 as an ecommerce fashion brand selling comfortable bathing suits that fit a range of body types. Now, the company sells vacation apparel and accessories in addition to its own swimsuits.
Andie Swim made the transition from standalone brand to multibrand boutique by leveraging Shopify Collective. This allows Andie Swim to sell products from other Shopify brands without acquiring additional inventory. Customers buy products from multiple brands in a single checkout, then partner brands fulfill their parts of the orders.
Why it works
Andie Swim’s swimsuits and its complementary product offerings from other brands all share a central theme: vacation. “We’re striving to be the one-stop vacation shop,” says Jordan Mack, senior ecommerce manager at Andie Swim. “From swimwear to towels, hats, and chic cover-ups—we’re becoming that destination.”
Feature illustration by Cornelia Li
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How to start an online boutique FAQ
Is an online boutique profitable?
Yes, an online boutique can be profitable. You’ll want to find a niche and develop a marketing plan to help build brand awareness. Making a business plan can help you understand your finances and illuminate the steps you need to take to ensure profitability in the long run.
What are the best online boutiques?
The best online boutiques include Lisa Says Gah, Ali Golden, and Archive Market. These companies have defined niches and curate their products around central themes. They also offer a unique and personalized online shopping experience.
Do I need a business license to start an online boutique?
Depending on your country, state, and city, you may need a business license or be required to meet other legal requirements. You may need a seller’s permit (or seller’s license) to sell your products online. These registrations can be essential to legally collecting sales tax.
How profitable is an online boutique?
According to ZipRecruiter, the average salary for an online boutique owner in the US is $112,891.
How do you start an online boutique from home?
To start an online boutique from home, follow these steps:
1. Choose a niche.
2. Identify market gaps.
3. Write a business plan.
4. Develop or source your products.
5. Choose a brand name and logo.
6. Price your products.
7. Create an online store.
8. Invest in social selling and sales channels.
9. Create a shipping strategy.
10. Market your online boutique.
Where do online boutiques get their clothes?
Online boutiques get their clothes from wholesale marketplaces like Faire, Orderchamp, Creoate, and Go Wholesale. They also source products from dropshipping partners, manufacturers, other brands, and auctions (for secondhand or antique products).
Is it worth it to start an online boutique?
Yes, it is worth starting an online boutique. With the rise of social commerce and consumers seeking unique, curated shopping experiences, online boutiques are well-positioned for success. Merchants like Lisa Says Gah have built successful boutiques with the direct-to-consumer ecommerce model.
